


In the Pale Moonlight

by ThisIsMyTruthTellMeYours



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Family, Gen, hurt-comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-26
Updated: 2020-01-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:54:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22424416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisIsMyTruthTellMeYours/pseuds/ThisIsMyTruthTellMeYours
Summary: They were alone in the manor, the two of them. Bellatrix and Draco. A warm moment shared between aunt and nephew as they reconnected during Easter Break of his fifth year, after Bellatrix escaped from Azkaban
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	In the Pale Moonlight

_**Disclaimer:** The ideas are mine, the characters are not... I did miss spending time with them_

* * *

The sound of the cello filled the entire house.

They were alone in the manor, the two of them. Bellatrix was in the sitting room, playing the old instrument that had gathered dust in the attic for more than a decade, and Draco was watching her play. He didn't think she was aware of his presence. He heard the music from his room and was drawn to it right away, but because he did not wish to disturb her, he merely stood at the door, half-hidden, barely peaking in.

Bellatrix Lestrange was beautiful. Draco was not surprised to find her living in his parents' house when he returned home from Easter Break during his fifth year. By then, the two of them had been corresponding for a while. She reached out to him as soon as she was able, saying how much she mourned the fact that she could not see him and how eager she was to see him again after so many years. She did not say where she was – she couldn't risk the letter being intercepted – but it was not difficult to guess. Draco was sure his parents had no trouble concealing whatever they wished from the sloppy searches conducted by Ministry employees.

Receiving her first letter was quite a shock. Not only he was not expecting it, but he was not prepared for such warm words from a woman whose only image in his mind was a deranged, enraged which, screaming from the frames of her photograph in the Daily prophet, along nine other disreputable individuals.

Over time, however, the strangeness faded away. She was not a stranger, she was his mother's older sister. His aunt. His family.

A lot of things had changed at Malfor Mannor since Bellatrix had moved in. His father was still his disagreeable self, and Draco was sure he did not welcome his sister in law with open arms, but Narcisa would not have it any other way. Draco had never seen his mother standing her ground with her husband like that. It surprised and delighted him to no end. He loved his mother, and he was infinitely closer to her than he would ever be to his father, but he had no idea of how strong she could be.

There were a lot of things he did not know about his mother… As a boy he often wondered why she did not join the Dark Lord, why she did not pursue further ways to expand her magic, like his father did. When he was very small, he remembered being glad he was boy, because boys could grow up to do more than just sit at home looking after a child. Girls were obviously… less. Later when he started Hogwarts his preconceptions were challenged. There was nothing inherently superior about being a man… Minerva McGonagall was one the most powerful witches he had ever seen, and he knew her powers rivalled those of any wizard he could think of. Except perhaps the Dark Lord. Hell, if someone like Granger could outperform him in class, why couldn't his mother be more? Why did she simply choose to stay at home? He loved his mother, but he did not admire her.

In the past few days however, that started to change. There were a lot of things he did not know about his mother. He had never known he could play the violin, for instance. He had seen the instruments gathering dust in the attic, but they did not seem magical enough for him to pay attention anyway. The first night he was back for Easter, though, he head the music coming from the sitting room. It was beautiful. He knew nothing about classical music, had never bothered hearing any of it, but he was immediately entranced. And it was very surprising to find them there, his aunt on the cello, and his mother standing next to her, playing the violin. Then too he remained hidden, watching the two women from afar. He did not wish to intrude into what was clearly a private moment. He saw his mother smiling to Bellatrix, a smile he only ever saw her use with himself, and even then, very rarely. She loved her sister… A feeling that Draco, as an only child had never thought about before. Now he regretted not asking his mother about Bellatrix before. He could have asked whether she missed her, and offered his mother comfort in her loneliness… It simply had never occurred to him to ask.

He had seen Bellatrix enchant the cello to play on its own, but he actually prefer it this way. She was sort of sitting sideways in relation to the door, and most of what Draco could see was her back, and the side of her face, her silhouette outlined against the stormy sky thought the large window on the opposite wall. Her right arm moved in ample arches producing the most beautiful sounds as her left hand slided down the arm of the instrument and her fingers vibrated each of the notes, giving them more feeling than Draco could ever describe with words.

Before he knew it, the music was over, but the notes were still ringing in his ear. He listened closely to his aunt's deep breaths, silently synchronizing his breath with hers. And then he heard something else. He saw her reach up with her hand, delicately drying her eyes and then he realized what it was… She was crying.

"Aunt Bella?" he called, hesitantly, from his place at the door. She seemed slightly startled. "I am sorry, I didn`t mean to… I heard… is everything okay."

"Yes, yes, of course, dear," she said quickly, doing her best to wipe the tears away. "I was just… lost in memories, for a moment. It's been a long time since I played this concerto, that's all"

Draco walked up to her and used his index finger to gently dry her tears. He was quiet. Draco didn't even understand why he was doing that, he just knew he hated to see her cry. He had never had with anyone the kind of relationship that he was beginning to built with his aunt. Beneath all her strength and energy he could also see her vulnerability. She let him see it, she was not guarded against him. And her thinned body was a constant reminder of how much she'd suffer. He wanted to show her tenderness.

"Oh, I'm sorry, dear. I'm so sorry… You shouldn't have to see me like this."

"It's okay, aunt Bella," he said simply

Bellatrix smiled and held his hand, giving it a tight squeeze.

"Enough of this, humm? Enough sadness. Why don't you take your aunt for a spin?"

She stood up, holding his hand, and the cello stayed right where it was, supported by the end pin in such an angle that was only made possible by magic. The strings tightened themselves and the blow flew in a graceful arch to touch the C string and begin playing. It was wonderful to watch. It was something he had learnt to expect from his aunt. There was always so much magic around her, in everything she said and did. All of it was very elaborate, and most of what he'd seen was very beautiful.

"A spin?" he asked, a little cluelessly.

"A dance."

"I-", he hesitated, "I don't know how…"

Bellatrix smiled.

"Here, I'll show you."

She placed one of his hands on her waste and held the other one up on her own. Then she passed her left arm around his shoulder and just like that she began to move.

"Watch me, and move the same way I lead you," she whispered ever so softly on his ear, "yes, that's it. You're a natural"

Draco felt very stiff. He hesitased and missed a couple of steps, but his aunt was very patient with him. Whenever he moved the wrong way, she just smiled and nodded, urging not to pay attention to that. She whispered in his ear things about the Minuet that was playing, about the history of that type of dance, about her memories of when she first learnt how to dance.

"You don't remember this, but you danced this Minuet before, with me."

"I did?" Draco inquired. It didn't seem possible. When his aunt had been taken to Azkaban, he was still very young, he probably could not even walk.

"I used to take care you you all the time, back then. Your mother was very sick for the first few months after you were born. Those were difficult times. There was a war going on. I was fighting for the Dark Lord most of the time. But whenever I could I would come back here, and take care of you both."

Draco listened quietly to these old stories, still following his aunt's movements as they danced. She was a very powerful witch. But her skinny body seemed almost fragile in his arms.

"You were a quiet baby. You hardly ever cried. But there was this one time, you were crying and you wouldn't stop, no matter what Cissy did. She had tried changing you, feeding you, singing a lullaby but nothing seemed to work, and by the time I got here, she was on the verge of tears herself. I put her to sleep on this sofa right here, and had the cello play this very song… When we were little, whenever she had trouble sleeping she would come to my room and sometimes I played for her, to make her sleep. That night you were in my arms, and you seemed to enjoy the music too. When Cissy realized you were okay she fell asleep. And we danced, you and I. You were on my lap, and I was just spinning around the room, but you loved it anyway."

Draco was quiet for a moment.

"I remember the scent of your hair."

"Hmm?"

"Tangerine and rose… I always liked this scent, I didn't know why… My mother never wore it. I had no idea where I had sensed it before, but now I know… It's the scent of your hair… I must have remembered it from back then."

Belltrix smiled and stopped for a moment.

"Thank you… for teaching me how to dance, aunt Bella"

She kissed his forehead.

"My darling boy… You can count on me for anything you wish."

Draco nodded… He lay down his head on her shoulder and they went on dancing.


End file.
